Preamble.- WHEREAS it is expedient to consolidate and amend the law relating to the levy of a general tax on the sale or purchase of goods in the State of Kerala :
BE it enacted in the Fourteenth Year of the Republic of India as follows.
1. Short Title, Extent And Commencement:- (1) This Act may be called the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963.
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Kerala.
(3) It shall come into force on such date as the government may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint.
2. Definitions:- In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires :
(i) "Appellate Assistant Commissioner" means any person appointed to be an Appellate Assistant Commissioner under section 3;
(ii) "Appellate Tribunal" means the Appellate Tribunal appointed under section 4;
(iii) "assessee" means a person by whom tax or any other sum or money is payable under this Act, and includes every person in respect of whom any proceedings under this Act have been taken for the assessment of tax payable by him;
(iv) "assessing authority" means any person authored by the government or by any authority empowered by them to make an assessment under this Act;
(v) "Board of Revenue" means the Board of Revenue constituted under the Kerala Board of Revenue Act, 1957;
(vi) "business" includes -
(a) any trade, commerce or manufacture or any adventure or concern in the nature of trade, commerce, or manufacture, whether or not such trade, commerce, manufacture, adventure or concern is carried on with a motive to make gain or profit and whether or not any profit accrues from such trade, commerce, manufacture, adventure or concern; and
(b) any transaction in connection with, or incidental or ancillary to such trade, commerce, manufacture, adventure or concern;
(vii) "casual trader" means a person who has, whether as principal, agent or in any other capacity, occasional transaction involving the buying, selling, supply or distribution of goods in the State, whether for cash or for deferred payment, or for commission, remuneration, or other valuable consideration;
(viii) "dealer" means any person who carries on the business of buying, selling supplying or distributing goods, executing works contract, transferring the right to use any goods or supplying by way of or as part of any service, any goods, directly or otherwise, whether for cash or for deferred payment, or for commission remuneration or other valuable consideration and includes, -
(a) the Central Government, a State Government, local authority, company, a Hindu undivided family, a Marumakkathayam tarwad, a family governed by the Kerala Nambudiri Act, 1958, an Aliyasanthana family, a firm, a society, a club or an association which cames on such business;
(b) a casual trader;
(c) a commission agent, a broker or a del credere agent or an auctioneer or any other mercantile agent, by whatever name called, who carries on the business of buying, selling, supplying or distributing goods, executing works contract, transferring right to use any goods or supplying by way of or as part of any service, any goods on behalf of any principal;
(d) a non-resident dealer or an agent of a non-resident dealer, or a local branch of a firm or company or association or body of persons whether incorporated or not situated outside the State;
(e) a person who, whether in the course of business or not, sells -
(i) goods produced by him by manufacture, agricultural, horticulture or otherwise; or
(ii) trees which grow spontaneously and which are agreed to be severd before sale or under the contract of sale;
(f) a person who whether in the course of business or not -
(1) transfers any goods, including controlled goods whether in pursuance of a contract or not, for cash or deferred payment or other valuable consideration;
(2) transfers property in goods, whether as goods or in some other form, involved in the execution of a works contract;
(3) delivers any goods on hire purchase or any system of payment by instalments;
(4) transfers the right use any goods for any purpose whether or not for a specified period for cash, deferred payment or other valuable consideration;
(5) supplies, by way of or as part of any service or in any other manner whatsoever, goods, being food or any other articles for human consumption or any drink (whether or not intoxicating),where such supply or service is for cash, deferred payment or other valuable consideration;
Explanation 1 : A society including a co-operative society, club or firm or an association or body of persons, whether incorporated or not which whether or not in the course of business, buys, sells, supplies or distributes goods from or to its members for cash or for deferred payment, or for commission, remuneration or other valuable consideration, shall be deemed to be a dealer for the purposes of this Act;
Explanation 2 : The Central Government or a State Government, which, whether or not in the course of business, buys, sells, supplies or distributes goods, directly or otherwise, for cash or for deferred payment, or for commission, remuneration or other valuable consideration, shall be deemed to be a dealer for the purposes of this Act.
(g) a bank or financing institution which, whether in the course of its business or not, sells any gold or other valuable article pledged with it to secure any loan, for the realisation of such loan amount;
Explanation I :Bank for the purposes of this clause includes a nationalised bank or a scheduled bank or co-oprative bank;
Explanation II :Financing institution means a financing institution other than a bank;
(ix) "declared goods" means goods declared by section 14 of Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (Central Act 74 of 1956) to be of special importance in inter-State trade or commerce;
(x) "Deputy Commissioner" means any person appointed to be a Deputy Commissioner of Sales Tax under section 3;
(xi) "foodgrains" means paddy, rice, wheat, maize, jowar, bajra, barley and ragiand includes such other articles as the government may, by notification in the Gazette, specify as such;
(xii) "goods" means all kinds of movable property (other than news papers, actionable claims, electricity, stocks and shares and securities) and include livestock, all materials, commodities and articles (including those to be used in the construction, fitting out, improvement or repair of immovable property or used in the fitting out, improvement or repair of movable property) and every kind of property (whether as goods or in some other form) involved in the execution of a works contract, and all growing crops, grass or things attached to, or forming part of the land which are agreed to be severd before sale or under the contract of sale;
(xiii) "inspecting Assistant Commissioner" means any person appointed to be an Inspecting Assistant Commissioner of Sales Tax under section 3;
(xiiia) "Joint Commissioner" means any person appointed to be a Joint Commissioner under section 3;
(xiv) "local authority" means a municipal council, a municipal corporation, a township committee or a panchayat;
(xv) "motor spirit" means any substance which, by itself or in admixture with other substances is ordinarily used directly or indirectly to provide reasonably efficient fuel for automotive or stationary internal combustion engines and includes petrol, diesel oil and other internal combustion oils, but does not includes kerosene, furnace oil, coal or charcoal;